Forest claims Snakebite Division Championship

Forest's #52 Rachel Mazzurco was instrumental in the Wildcats taking home the Snakebite Division Championship, while #24 Caley Chappel was dominant on the mound and at the plate.

Doug Engle/Ocala Star-Banner/File

By Richard BurtonCorrespondent

Published: Saturday, April 6, 2013 at 10:24 p.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, April 6, 2013 at 10:24 p.m.

Forest's run to the Snakebite Division Championship of the Doc 4 Life Varsity Showdown was one dominated by exciting finishes and stellar pitching.

In the Gold Final against Jacksonville Bishop Kenney, the Wildcats earned a 4-3 win in nine innings for their second extra-inning victory in the event, which saw them allow just four runs in 32 innings.

Calley Chappel went 2-for-3 with a homer in the championship game and went the distance on the mound for the win with nine strikeouts.

Rachel Mazzurco (2-for-3, double) and Arin Conrad (2-for-3) played well for FHS, while Morgan White, Danielle Hunter, Nikki Blanton and Katie Peters each added one hit.

Henderson added nine strikeouts for Forest, which was paced by Peters, who went 3-for-4 with a homer and four RBI.

McGee (2-for-3), Hunter (2-for-2, double) and Blanton (2-for-4, two doubles, RBI) also were strong at the plate in the opener for Forest, which went 4-0 in tournament play.

BROOKSVILLE HERNANDO 6, NORTH MARION 5: Holly McKinnon struck out 11 and went 2-for-5 with four RBI at the plate, but the Colts were downed in a close one by the Leopards, ranked No. 9 in Class 5A.

North Marion, the No. 3 team in Class 5A and No. 9 team in the All Class Poll by Miracle Sports, went 0-4 in the tournament with its three losses in a pool play against three ranked teams coming by a total of four runs.

Erin Klein was 4-for-4 with a run scored, while Savannah James was 3-for-5 for North Marion.

In other games: Creekside finished the tournament at 3-1 with a pair of one-run wins on Saturday.

The Knights, ranked No. 2 in both the All Class and 5A polls, downed Jacksonville Bolles 1-0 on a homer by Victoria Daddis and took out Clermont East Ridge 4-3 in the third-place game of the Diamondback Division.

Meanwhile, Vanguard fell 12-4 to Bishop Kenney in its final game of pool play in the Snakebite Division, while West Port was downed 16-2 by Wakulla in the same bracket.

VHS allowed 17 hits in the loss and the Wolf Pack gave up 13 in their defeat to Wakulla.

<p>Forest's run to the Snakebite Division Championship of the Doc 4 Life Varsity Showdown was one dominated by exciting finishes and stellar pitching.</p><p>In the Gold Final against Jacksonville Bishop Kenney, the Wildcats earned a 4-3 win in nine innings for their second extra-inning victory in the event, which saw them allow just four runs in 32 innings.</p><p>Calley Chappel went 2-for-3 with a homer in the championship game and went the distance on the mound for the win with nine strikeouts.</p><p>Rachel Mazzurco (2-for-3, double) and Arin Conrad (2-for-3) played well for FHS, while Morgan White, Danielle Hunter, Nikki Blanton and Katie Peters each added one hit.</p><p>Earlier on Saturday, the Wildcats routed Lake Minneola 10-0 behind Claudia Henderson's complete-game two-hitter.</p><p>Henderson added nine strikeouts for Forest, which was paced by Peters, who went 3-for-4 with a homer and four RBI.</p><p>McGee (2-for-3), Hunter (2-for-2, double) and Blanton (2-for-4, two doubles, RBI) also were strong at the plate in the opener for Forest, which went 4-0 in tournament play.</p><p><b>BROOKSVILLE HERNANDO 6, NORTH MARION 5:</b> Holly McKinnon struck out 11 and went 2-for-5 with four RBI at the plate, but the Colts were downed in a close one by the Leopards, ranked No. 9 in Class 5A.</p><p>North Marion, the No. 3 team in Class 5A and No. 9 team in the All Class Poll by Miracle Sports, went 0-4 in the tournament with its three losses in a pool play against three ranked teams coming by a total of four runs.</p><p>Erin Klein was 4-for-4 with a run scored, while Savannah James was 3-for-5 for North Marion.</p><p><b>In other games:</b> Creekside finished the tournament at 3-1 with a pair of one-run wins on Saturday.</p><p>The Knights, ranked No. 2 in both the All Class and 5A polls, downed Jacksonville Bolles 1-0 on a homer by Victoria Daddis and took out Clermont East Ridge 4-3 in the third-place game of the Diamondback Division.</p><p>Meanwhile, Vanguard fell 12-4 to Bishop Kenney in its final game of pool play in the Snakebite Division, while West Port was downed 16-2 by Wakulla in the same bracket.</p><p>VHS allowed 17 hits in the loss and the Wolf Pack gave up 13 in their defeat to Wakulla.</p>